Bubble Banter update: One month until Selection Sunday

The latest edition of Bubble Banter projects 32 teams as either “locks” or teams that “should be in” with a month of action remaining until Selection Sunday. With 68 total spots available (including 31 automatic qualifiers), there are roughly 14 spots available and 37 teams on the bubble. As clarification, several teams listed as bubble teams could win automatic bids; so the number is still somewhat fluid.

This is especially true for teams like Harvard, Oral Roberts, Long Beach State, and Nevada. Harvard can lock up a bid within a couple of weeks because the Ivy League doesn’t have a conference tournament. ORU, Long Beach State, and Nevada will all be favorites to win their league tournaments. The real test for the Selection Committee begins when (or if) these teams fall short of being an automatic qualifier. How do their resumes compare against fellow bubble dwellers – such as Minnesota, Northwestern, Mississippi, Arizona, Seton Hall, Cincinnati, Xavier, Central Florida, and a host of others. Hopefully, we’ll sort a few things out in the next three weeks.

Until then, we’ll note these changes from last week: La Salle, Stanford, Oklahoma, and Marshall have been removed from the bubble. Any or all could potentially return, but for now, their profiles are too far down the at-large board. Teams joining the bubble include Illinois, Pittsburgh, and Wyoming. Wyoming moves up to join Colorado State and New Mexico in the Mountain West. Illinois drops down thanks to an ongoing slide and projected tough finish in the Big Ten. Pitt joins largely due to the return of Tray Woodall.